especially here at st. james park. they're bracing them selves for the chilly temperatures. behind me the cold weather has them and others keeping an eye tonight on the mercury. chris chose st. james park to practice his hobby highlighting the grander of the old bank of america building. >> spire and columns and arches. >> reporter: but the artist knows there is a much different picture at ground level. >> last night probably dropped down to 30. if you're outside, the temperature of what it is outside, you know. and you just live it. >> my hands felt like they#l$ñ going to fall off. >> reporter: 5,000 to 7,000 people are estimated to be homeless in santa clara county on any given night. with roughly 300 winter emergency beds available, some

choose to sleep in st. james park. >> there was a little ice on the ground. you can notice the change. >> reporter: those who can afford a roof over their heads have been calling companies like bex heating and air conditioning. how busy are you? >> right now we're swamped. we have a lot of people with no heat. imagine everybody gets cold at the same time. >> reporter: his workers start early in the morning and clock out around 9:00 p.m. replacing thermostats and tightening loose wires and changing filters. >> thank you so much. >> reporter: the homeless back at st. james park will be cold again tonight, but maybe not as hungry. students and teachers from st. john school delivered a little food today. >> i think it makes the students more appreciative of being indoors where it's warm. >> a lesson on the nature of life at st. james park. tonight at 6:00 we'll hear from the fruit farmer down here in

the south bay who say these freezing temperatures are actually good for their crop while they hibernate during the winter. nbc bay area news. >> thank you. that same storm sending us cold temperatures delivering snow to the sierra and nearly a foot deep right now with more on the way. here's what it looked like just about about 30 minutes ago. . jodi hernandez joins us live and you have a little snow on you. >> there's a lot of snow out here, jessica. skiers and snowboarders are in snow heaven tonight as you mentioned we're here at borio resort where folks are enjoying some night skiing and ok snowboarding action and there is plenty of new powder or pow as some like to call it up here for them to enjoy and snow lovers say, keep it coming. >> magic.

winter's here. it's awesome. >> reporter: snow lovers are celebrating. the first big storm system of the season has left the slopes with a healthy layer of snow and more is on the way. >> we have a little bit of fresh snow. there was some white room action this morning up top. super fun, so shacked! awesome park. it was a great day. >> reporter: couldn't be more excited to get a piece of it all. the cal-berkeley student played hooky today and he said it's worth it. >> got finals coming up. hit the studies real hard tomorrow and then be back on the slopes on friday. >> reporter: wow. >> i'm dedicated. >> reporter: these not the only one skirting responsibilities in the name of snow. diana ferroai fares skipped worn her sister on the slopes. >> big storm came last night. i knew i was calling in sick today. yep. called in sick and now i'm here. >> it's nice.

i've been cutting the rails, it's nice. >> reporter: and we are back here live where you can see the lights are on. the slopes are open. people are riding the rails, shredding the nar and i don't know about you, jessica, but i'm shacked. reporting live i'm jodi hernandez, i'll send it back to you. >> with all that shredding and cutting, of course you are. thank you, jodi. always track the weather on our website, nbcbayarea.com click on the weather tab and then maps and radar. it's updated in realtime, too. new details of our other top story this morning. a commuting nightmare on b.a.r.t. a train traveling 70 miles per hour suddenly stopped when its parking brake engaged on its own. in the end, nine people went to the hospital. nbc bay area shirl hurd joins us from the station where she just

got new information about what triggered this problem. >> we just learned that b.a.r.t. brake became engaged because of an electrical short. we just learned that moments ago. but, as you can see, trains are back on time and passengers are going about their evening. that's the good news. but the bad news is that some passengers are still shaken up tonight. oaklandñ'7 firefighters rushed the rock ridge station this morning preparing for major triage on the b.a.r.t. transform and down below. >> by that time the train is already filling up with smoke. >> reporter: smoke quickly filled the ten-car train that skidded to a stop in the berkeley hills tunnel. >> the emergency brake became engaged. we're not sure why. i don't believe anyone pulled it. just the emergency brake became engaged and that caused a tremendous amount of white smoke. never a fire, but a lot of smoke. >> reporter: firefighters are calling it dust. nbc bay area received this cell

phone video from a b.a.r.t. rider inside the train. you can see a passenger who was passed out being carried through the train. >> we didn't know what happened. and we didn't know, understand the real serious problem. but we were stuck in a tonal for the longest time in my life. this is the first time ever. but the smoke decided to come in and people had a hard time breathing. >> reporter: nine people were taken to area hospitals that had problems breathing. two passengers overcome by the dust inside the train refused medical help. >> they would not open the door and people started getting sick. why can't they open the door? if people cannot breathe. >> reporter: b.a.r.t. officials admit it was a serious situation, but they believe they got help there in time. >> we had two staging areas, one at rock ridge and we had fire personnel on both sides and we sent rescue trains into the tunnel to help passengers. iááiuq able to get the disabled train to operate under its own power and remove that train to

rock ridge at 9:30. >> now even though b.a.r.t. officials are saying that this problem was electrical, the investigation is not over. and coming up at 6:00, we'll tell you why b.a.r.t. officials feel something like this could happen again. reporting live in oakland, i'm cheryl hurd, nbc bay area. a difficult year for b.a.r.t. to say the least. if you'd like to see the full video clip of those tense moments go to nbcbayarea.com and search b.a.r.t. learning more of the victim in a deadly crash in san jose last night. anthony garcia was killed by a car near the corner of vista park drive and brandon lane in south san jose. the crash happened just before 7:00 in the evening. the teenager rushed to a local hospital but died soon after. the driver is cooperating with investigators. this marks the 25th pedestrian or cyclist killed by a car in san jose this year alone. that's more than twice the number from last year. the suspect accused of

killing a 22-year-old over a playstation made his first appearance in court today.&'ç 21-year-old roni collins didn't enter a plea during his brief appearance. accused of shooting 22-year-old waka after arranging to buy a playstation from the victim and his girlfriend. prosecutors said collins responded to the couple on instagram and the couple met with him in the afternoon instead of pulling cash out of his coat, they said collins pulled a gun and pointed it at the victim. the victim told collins to just then take the playstation. >> the defendant said nah and pointed the gun back down at him and shot him in each arm and twice in the lower abdomen. >> he died a short time later at san francisco general. one counts of murder and two counts of attempted burglary. bail has been set at $5 million. new video just in of a possible kidnapping in milpitas

that was caught on camera by a transit bus. this disturbing video was taken last night at 6:00. police say the driver had just pulled over for a stop when she witnessed what you're seeing. officers say the driver saw the man dragging the woman into the bushes, but when police arrived just two minutes later, they couldn't find the couple. if you have any information, you're urged to call milpitas police. it's a road block designed to keep us safe. coming up, how it's programmed to fight time and the siliciconicon company. the search for a local pilot and his family missing in the idaho wilderness for three days now. that story coming up in a live report. police in fremont need your help in finding this man. we're back in a moment.

take a good look. fremont police are asking for your help in identifying this man caught on camera during a burglary. around 12:30 on the afternoon on saturday near fremont boulevard. the security cameras inside the home and they captured this man rooting through items in the home. investigators are urging anyone who recognize s to submit a tap on the record or do it anonymously, as well. the search for a missing silicon valley executive and his family is growing more desperate by the hour. no sign of them or the small plane they were flying in. late this afternoon we received new video from the idaho transportation department. it shows day three of the search. dale smith and his family are believed to be somewhere near boise.

additional resources were brought in to help. kimberly terry joins us from the reid hill view airport in san jose where smith parks his plane. kimberly. >> the area where they're searching in central idaho is rough, rugged, very, very steep terrain and you'll see more of that video in just a moment. today, mother nature cooperated, which made it a little easier on the searchers. but, still, no sign of the pilot or his family. 18 additional search and rescue workers who were brought in to central idaho today. along with three more fixed wing aircraft to search for any sign of dale smith, his family or the missing plane. >> so, they are using a very systematic approach today to kind of search the entire search area. >> reporter: 51-year-old smith was piloting a single engine plane when he left bakers city, oregon, saturday afternoon. the family just celebrated thanksgiving. this is a photo posted on facebook by smith's wife.

when the plane reported engine trouble about 125 miles northeast of boise. >> there's a lot of very steep mountains, many of the peaks go up to 8,000 or 9,000 feet in that area. >> reporter: yesterday search and rescue teams got it from the emergency beacon and they say the mountainous terrain makes it unre unreliable. so, today, the search area was expanded. >> unable to pinpoint anything accurately because it's so faint and the nature of the terrain, it could have been from a variety of different areas all up along that canyon. >> reporter: aviation experts say if the beacon is original to the plane, it only has a battery life of up to 48 hours and the fridged temperatures could drain the energy even faster. >> i believe it got below zero up in that area last night. >> reporter: which is also a serious concern for the family, if they survived the crash. they've had to spend three nights in the wilderness.

the search efforts in central idaho have wrapped up for the night. it is mountain time there, much darker than it is here already. the search will resume bright and early tomorrow morning. live in san jose, kimberly terry. >> let's hope they have better luck tomorrow. a 13-year-old pleasantton girl is back home tonight after she was subject of an intense search by police and family members. she did leave home willingly she was found safe in san jose by a relative. this man may have committed two violent robberies. one on tuesday and the other on thursday both last week. they happened at the central park area. in both cases a man approached a woman, hit her, stole her purse and ran. investigators say he is darked skin and about 25 years old and 5'10" and last seen wearing a dark puffy jacket and black hit. we have new details about the car crash that killed

popular actor paul walker. according to the coroner he died within seconds of saturday's crash. traumatic injuries and burns. the driver of that porsche, a friend of walker's died from the impact. questions have been raised whether the men could have been rescued. also today universal pictures shut down production of "fast & furious 7." much of the film has been shot but still a lot. chris christie has friends in california and maybe some votes, as well. a new poll shows christie is viewed most favorably among the pack of republicans who may be favorable candidates in 2014. the conservative tea party as a drag on the gop and like christie for not embracing the movement. other republicans named to the poll were viewed as more unfavorable than favorable.

senator ted cruz of texas and senator rand paul of connecticut. santa clara wants to combine two proposed development projects into one. this includes the plans by 49ers legend joe montana. the sites would be next to levi stadium. montana's plan has a luxury hotel, office and entertainment space. the competing plan is larger and includes housing. now, the goal is to combine these two plans and to build them, this project by super bowl l which will be played in santa clara in 2016. >> we're going to work as fast as we can to meet certain time frames and objectives of the developments overall. we'll make every effort to do something to get a portion of that project under way before super bowl. >> they will be fighting the clock. the projects are still in the early stages of the approval process. meteorologist jeff ranieri working overtime today because of these chilly temperatures. >> yes. you know, a lot of you that

dealt with these 20s this morning like in santa rosa, alamo, pleasanton and it's going to get even colder as we head through tomorrow and even san francisco zoo down there for those animals to 35 degrees this morning. let's look at some of the worst chill that we did have. that was here in napa with just a wind five to ten miles per hour and made temperatures feel like 24 degrees this morning. definitely some of the coldest weather we have been mentioning in nine months. let's take you outside right now and unbelievable. what we're dealing with for these averages in the north bay. right now 38 degrees and san francisco 49 and also the peninsula at 47. let's take you into san francisco and we'll be near record-setting lows and 37 degrees expected with clear skies and by 1:00 p.m. and temperatures at 51 degrees. get some warming in there but jacket weather, again, for tomorrow. you'll also see here across the peninsula, a colder start for you, as well. temperatures near 30 degrees across palo alto.

so, hopefully, you've got some sort of great deal on a jacket on black friday because you're going to need it. freeze warning the next 24 hours. we have now extended this here to the east bay and also for the south bay so this means for you temperatures will also range 25 to 36 degrees as we continue throughout tomorrow morning. so, it's still not too late to protect those plants and, of course, remember to bring those pets inside, as well. now, the overall pattern that is producing all of this cold air across the bay area looks like it's going to stay in place here as we head, i think at least through about saturday and the forecast it's dragging down all of this polar air from alaska and also into portions of canada. so, again, with that staying put, we're going to see this chilly air here across the bay area. let's get a look at some of the numbers. as we head throughout tomorrow morning, close to the teens to the north bay. 21 in santa rosa and 22 in napa and also 25 in novato and for the east bay 27 in livermore and

san jose down below the freezing mark. as we have been talking about, it's certainly very important to wear those layers tomorrow morning and it could even be harmful to some of those pipes in your home, especially in the north bay where we will be getting close to the teens. you definitely want to double check anything if you have any kind of pipes exposed. let's go and get a look at that thursday forecast. a lot of sunshine and not much in the way of cloud cover and temperatures only in the 40s here across los gatos for daytime high and san sfrun expecting low 50s in the forecast. let's get a look across the east bay, north bay and also for the tri-valley. think it will be colder. it will be just about the same, slightly cooler here across the east bay and temperatures upper 40s for your daytime highs and pleasanton 50 and now as we look ahead towards the rest of this week, you'll see on that seven-day forecast scrolling at the bottom of your screen, by friday we'll see storm activity out here approach and it looks like a decent chance of showers

as we head throughout friday evening and temperatures in the low 50s and right now forecast models start to bring some of this rain down as we head throughout 7:00, 8:00 and 9:00. of course, more on this forecast coming up at 6:00, you guys. >> thank you, jeff. ahead, the real-life robo-cop to fight crime courtesy of a silicon valley company.

you're looking at a fire and the smoke that destroyed a mobile home in south san jose. broke out around 2:00 this morning at the casa mobile home block near monterey.

fortunately, no one was hurt. authorities say the man that lived there was not home at the time and still has not been reached. no word yet on the cause of the fire. smoking electronic cigarettes to be banned in richmond. last night the city council voted to exclude electronic cigarettes in its tough anti-smoking laws. not only a lack of research on the new devices, but they worry they could act as a gateway to real cigarettes for kids. they allow users to breathe nicotine vapor and not yet regulated by the fda. the ordinance will get a second reading in january and could become law as soon as 90 days thereafter. a warning for facebook, twitter users 2 million passwords are leak and now public record. spider lab said the passwords weren't leaked by the company but thousands of infected computers. the virus hides out on computers and then collects log-in information without them

knowing. almost as troubling is people seem to be picking easy to guess passwords. 16,000 people had the password 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. nchsh it looks like rd2d. k5. a robot made by nightscope. it can roam anywhere within a 24-hour electric charge collecting data on high-crime areas. >> that data is in the format of 360 degree in daytime and nighttime video and character recognition and gesture recognition and thermal imaging and a 3d map of immediate surroundings. >> k5 in beta testing and night scope hopes to sell it or rent it to law enforcement agencies. scott budman will take k5 out

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okay, forget wrestling with the tree, you can order delivered to your house with just a touch of a button. home depot and car service uber are teaming up to deliver christmas trees this year. all you have to do is download the app and click on the button. set up the delivery time and the tree will be dropped off at your

door. the trees are seven to eight feet tall and cost about $138. delivery service available in san francisco and nine other cities, as well. >> half the fun is tying it up on the roof or slamming it in the car. >> too skinny, which one do i like? all right, jeff ranieri is here. how about we go to a warm weather location like chicago or new york? >> well, balmy there, texas might be a better bet. colder in the bayñ area with 40 degrees in napa and chicago and also new york city and right now those temperatures in the 50s. the average here across parts of the bay area now dropping into the 40s here for the most part. coming up in that 6:00 p.m. show, we'll have more on our cool day we expect for tomorrow and, of course, that freeze warning and where some of the coldest temperatures expected as we head throughout that thursday morning in just about 30 minutes, you guys. >> it is chilly. thank you, jeff. >> thanks for joining us here at 5:00. brian williams is next. >> we hope to see you at 6:00. bye-bye.

on our broadcast tonight, off a cliff. temperatures diving 40 degrees in some spots. dramatic weather moving from west to east and causing some big problems on the way. stranded in the ever glasd, dozens of whales. the journey home for wounded americans in afghanistan. tonight richard engle with the service men and women on board the first flight to safety. and making a difference. the woman who quietly saved up a fortune and did something that surprised the entire town. nightly news begins now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is nbc nightly news with brian williams. good evening. if you're watching us from